Staff photo / Dan Pompili Youngstown State University Interim Provost Jennifer Pintar participates Friday in a public interview session as part of YSU’s effort to hire someone permanently for the position of provost and vice president of academic affairs. Two more candidates will visit YSU next week.

Provost forums

Public forums for finalists for Youngstown State University provost and vice president of academic affairs continue next week on campus in Schwebel Auditorium of Moser Hall at 2 pm.

MONDAY: Alyson A. Gill, who most recently served as provost (2021 to 2023) at Lees-McRae College in Banner Elk, North Carolina.

TUESDAY: Carolyn Smith Keller, associate provost and professor of social sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville.

YOUNGSTOWN — Interim Provost Jennifer Pintar was the first of three candidates to participate in a public interview session as part of Youngstown State University’s process to hire someone permanently for the position.

Pintar gave a presentation Friday afternoon to about 25 faculty and staff gathered in the Schwebel Auditorium in Moser Hall, then took time to answer questions about her plans should she be selected as the university’s new provost and vice president for academic affairs.

Pintar said being the faculty’s voice at the executive table, improving student retention and guiding YSU successfully through the difficult process of retrenchment are among her priorities, should she win the job.

“I know Youngstown State University, and I know how truly special this university really is,” said Pintar, who began her career at YSU as an exercise science instructor 25 years ago. She served in several leadership positions, including department chair, before being appointed in 2017 as associate provost and director of faculty relations.

She said her administrative career truly began in faculty relations.

“It opened my eyes to how this university really works, and what the pain points are for faculty and what the pride points are,” she said.

Pintar noted that in 2023, as vice provost for academic administration and student outreach support, she helped to negotiate the most recent faculty contract, which she said was approved by more than 90 percent of the faculty union and fully supported by the university’s Board of Trustees.

Pintar said retrenchment — the process of cutting programs that are financially unsustainable and, by extension, some of the faculty who lead them — is a painful, but necessary, process to help YSU through turbulent economic times.

She said the university faces numerous challenges that require cost-cutting efforts, such as fewer high school graduates because of declining population, a lowered perception among students and parents about the value of college education and increasingly strict policies requiring the university to report to the state about low enrollment or duplicative courses.

She said if YSU does not make hard choices now, it could one day be in the same trouble as Lakeland Community College in Lake County, which state Auditor Keith Faber’s office last week called financially unsustainable.

Pintar said YSU needs fearless leaders to see it through the storm.

“You need administrators willing to shoulder the negative press and what is said about them as they make these difficult decisions,” she said.

She said it is important for YSU to be cautious in its hiring of faculty.

“We have to make sure that person has a purpose and that that program will be sustainable in the long term,” she said.

Pintar said she would one day like to be able to pay faculty better, but acknowledged that YSU lacks the resources because of the business model that has made it successful until now.

“One of the things we’re most proud of is the low cost of tuition in exchange for a high-quality product,” she said. “It’s really what we’re known for, but it also leaves us without as many resources as we need or would like to have.”

Among other priorities, Pintar said she wants to improve the university’s perception of administration, work with the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion to make YSU more welcoming for everyone, and be approachable and accountable to faculty in a way she says was not the norm when she first came to YSU.

“I don’t think I really even knew the provost for the first five years I was here,” she said. “I don’t want to be just a talking head. I want to be present and help solve problems. If I’m not seeing things the right way, I’d rather people tell me because I want to be there with you to tackle problems directly, face-to-face.”

Pintar received her bachelor’s degree in biology from Washington and Jefferson College of Pennsylvania in 1994. She later went on to earn her master’s in exercise physiology in 1995, Master of Public Health degree in epidemiology in 2004, and Ph.D. in exercise physiology in 2001 from the University of Pittsburgh.

On Monday, YSU will hear from Dr. Alyson A. Gill, who most recently served as provost (2021 to 2023) at Lees-McRae College in Banner Elk, North Carolina. She will be followed on Tuesday by Carolyn Smith Keller, associate provost and professor of social sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville.

Have an interesting story? Contact Dan Pompili at dpompili@vindy.com